A influência antrópica na qualidade da água do rio Tapajós, na cidade de Santarém-PA

O Rio Tapajós é uma das maiores bacias hidrográficas da região Norte do país, e o crescimento populacional de algumas cidades amazônicas coloca em risco a qualidade das suas águas. A cidade de Santarém, no Oeste do Pará, é uma das maiores cidades paraenses e não tem uma rede de esgoto eficiente, logo boa parte do esgoto doméstico é lançado in natura em igarapés e no rio Tapajós, o que afeta diretamente a balneabilidade do rio, que é um dos destinos turísticos em ascensão no país, devido às praias de água doce, a qualidade do pescado, que é parte da dieta alimentar da região e pode ser um vetor de doenças, as quais podem aumentar os gastos com a saúde pública. Com o objetivo de avaliar a influência antrópica no rio Tapajós foi realizada uma amostragem em seis pontos do rio na região conhecida como a orla da cidade. Foram analisados parâmetros físico-químicos, biológicos e nutrientes), Apesar de boa parte dos parâmetros estarem em conformidade com a CONAMA 357/05, os parâmetros biológicos foram acima do permitido para a classe II, indicando influência antrópica. Os dados apontaram que a presença de material particulado em suspensão (MPS), coliformes totais e fósforo inorgânico dissolvido (PID), sugerem aumento da degradação da qualidade da água. O estudo da queda na qualidade de água nos rios amazônicos é importante, pois a relação socioeconômica entre a população e os recursos hídricos é muito importante para a manutenção das funções ambientais, econômicas e sociais na região. The anthropic influence on the water quality of the Tapajós River, in the city of Santarém-PA A B S T R A C TThe Tapajós River is one of the largest hydrographic basins of the Northern region of the country, and the population growth of some Amazonian cities puts the quality of its waters at risk. The city of Santarém, in western Pará, is one of the largest cities in Pará and does not have an efficient sewage system, so much of the domestic sewage is released in natura into streams and the Tapajós River, which directly affects the balneability of the river, which is one of the tourist destinations on the rise in the country, due to its freshwater beaches, the quality of the fish, which is part of the diet of the region and can be a vector of diseases, which can increase spending on public health. To evaluate the anthropic influence on the Tapajós River, sampling was carried out at six points on the river in the region known as the city edge. Although most of the parameters complied with CONAMA 357/05, the biological parameters were above the permitted for class II, indicating anthropic influence. The data pointed out that the presence of suspended particulate matter (SPM), total coliforms, and dissolved inorganic phosphorus (DIP), suggest increased degradation of water quality. The study of the decline in water quality in Amazonian rivers is important because the socioeconomic relationship between the population and water resources is very important for the maintenance of environmental, economic, and social functions in the region. Keywords: Tapajós River, sewage, inorganic phosphorus, suspended particulate matter

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) and their Derivatives (O-PAHs, N-PAHs, OH-PAHs): Determination in Suspended Particulate Matter (SPM) – a Review

The aim of this paper is the presentation of the current state-of-the-art about the determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and their oxidized forms originating from Suspended Particulate Matter (SPM) samples. The influence of SPM on health is twofold. SPM, as composed of small particles, is dangerous for the respiratory system. Additionally, SPM is a carrier of many hazardous compounds, particularly PAHs. Recently, several researches focus on the derivatives of PAHs, particularly nitro-, oxy- and hydroxy-PAHs, which are more dangerous than the parent PAHs. Both gas and high-performance liquid chromatography with various detection techniques are used to analyze both PAHs and their oxidized forms. Due to the appearance of these compounds in the environment, at a very low level, an analyte concentration step has to be applied prior to analysis. If GC and HPLC techniques are chiefly used as analytical tools for these analyses, the spectrum of analyte concentration procedures is very broad. Many analyte concentration techniques are proposed: from classic liquid-solid extractions, including Soxhlet technique, pressurized liquid extraction (ASE) or microwave oven (MWE) and sonic supported extraction to SPE techniques applications. However, one should remember that PAH determination methods are tools for solving the main problem, i.e., the evaluation the health hazard connected to the presence of SPM in air. Thus, the main drawback of several papers found in this review, i.e., the lack of information concerning limit of detection (LOD) of these methods makes their applicability very limited.

Diagnostic Analysis and Modelling of Air Quality for Medium Sized City

It is witnessed that air pollution is an important issue regarding not only for human health but also for plants, animals and building materials. Increase in industrialisation, abundant use of automobiles, and network of highways, the quality of air of Amravati city is degrading day by day. The data has been collected for a period ranging from March 2020 to February 2021 for analysis and pollution forecasting model work. The concentration of Suspended Particulate Matter (SPM), Respiratory Suspended Particulate Matter (RSPM), Sulphur dioxide (SO2), Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and Ozone (O3) have been monitored over successive periods of time and also data is collected from monitoring stations controlled by MPCB. Numerous studies have been proposed for predicting pollution concentrations and improvement of performance of predictable models is an important issue. As is well known, collaborative observations proved that it can improve predictive performance. In this study, multivariate linear regression approach-based model was constructed to predict the RSPM in the air using the meteorological (air temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, rainfall) and air quality monitoring data (SPM, NO2, SO2, O3). Correlation between measured and model predicted vales of RSPM were 0.717,0.691,0.64 and 0.60 for winter, summer, monsoon and annual seasons respectively. However, the regression model based on seasonal data for winter was found to be more effective.

Observations of Suspended Particulate Matter Concentrations and Particle Size Distributions within a Macrotidal Estuary (Port Curtis Estuary, Australia)

An understanding of suspended particulate matter (SPM) dynamics is of great importance to design awareness and management strategies of estuaries. Using a Laser In Situ Scattering and Transmissiometry (LISST) instrument, variations in suspended particle size volumetric concentrations (VC) and particle size distributions (PSD) were measured at six sites within Port Curtis estuary (Australia). The port is a macrotidal estuary with significant economic and environmental importance. Observed VC and SPM sizes demonstrated spatial and temporal trends strongly controlled by the variable energy conditions operating on the neap and spring cycle timescale, with a clear trend towards increasing concentrations and decreasing SPM sizes with increasing tidal ranges. Mid-estuary sites were characterized by the greatest depth-averaged VC under transitional and spring conditions. Estuary-wide mean spring tide total water profile concentrations revealed a near 300% increase in comparison to neap tide condition concentrations. In the upper-estuary sites the mean contribution of the combined 2.5–35 µm size classes to the total profile PSDs was greatest during all tidal conditions, whilst within the lower-estuary site the combined 35–130 µm size classes were greatest. Mean contributions of the largest size class (300–500 µm) dominated surface-waters throughout the estuary during the neap tide period, which when compared with the transitional and spring tide conditions, demonstrated changes of −82% to −48% and −82% to −40%, respectively. Overall, the results from this case study provides further evidence of the important influence of neap and spring tidal regimes on SPM dynamics within estuarine settings and the need to observe parameter dynamics on such timescales.

Efficiency of Indian Thermal Power Plants and Suspended Particulate Matter: Findings Across Technological Assumptions and DEA Models

Suspended particulate matter (SPM) emissions from coal-based thermal power plants (CTPPs) cause respiratory illness. However, this has not been given its due importance in the efficiency assessment of CTPPs. This study contributes to the literature by incorporating suspended particulate matter in the benchmarking exercise for Indian CTPPs. In such a study, the theoretical assumptions regarding pollution generating technology or the choice of evaluation tool may impact the ranking of CTPPs. To draw robust inferences, we present a comparative study of two alternative microeconomic approaches (joint and by-production technologies) and two types of data envelopment analysis tools (graph–hyperbolic and directional distance function) applied on two representative samples of Indian CTPPs. Results indicate that Indian CTPPs are moderately inefficient. Choice of technological assumption or data envelopment analysis model does not impact the ranking of CTPPs. Ownership and plant load factor play vital roles in determining inefficiency, and impacts of these factors remain stable across models. JEL Classifications: C61, D22, Q40, Q50